Claudia Niemann

Structural and functional brain changes related to different types of physical activity across the life span.

Physical activity has been shown to improve cognitive functioning. Research has largely focused on cognitive facilitation by cardiovascular exercise in older adults. Only few studies have investigated younger age groups or other types of physical activity. In this paper we review and summarize common results found in recent studies of metabolic (i.e. cardiovascular and resistance) and coordinative exercise. Findings from human motor learning are utilized to complement results on coordinative exercise. Results show that both types of exercise affect the brain differently. We propose possible mechanisms by which physical activity facilitates cognitive performance by briefly reviewing microscopic structural changes in animal research. Lastly, we highlight open research questions.

Not only cardiovascular, but also coordinative exercise increases hippocampal volume in older adults.

Cardiovascular activity has been shown to be positively associated with gray and white matter volume of, amongst others, frontal and temporal brain regions in older adults. This is particularly true for the hippocampus, a brain structure that plays an important role in learning and memory, and whose decline has been related to the development of Alzheimer’s disease. In the current study, we were interested in whether not only cardiovascular activity but also other types of physical activity, i.e., coordination training, were also positively associated with the volume of the hippocampus in older adults. For this purpose we first collected cross-sectional data on “metabolic fitness” (cardiovascular fitness and muscular strength) and “motor fitness” (e.g., balance, movement speed, fine coordination). Second, we performed a 12-month randomized controlled trial. Results revealed that motor fitness but not metabolic fitness was associated with hippocampal volume. After the 12-month intervention period, both, cardiovascular and coordination training led to increases in hippocampal volume. Our findings suggest that a high motor fitness level as well as different types of physical activity were beneficial to diminish age-related hippocampal volume shrinkage or even increase hippocampal volume.

Exercise-induced changes in basal ganglia volume and cognition in older adults.

Physical activity has been demonstrated to diminish age-related brain volume shrinkage in several brain regions accompanied by a reduction of age-related decline in cognitive functions. Most studies investigated the impact of cardiovascular fitness or training. Other types of fitness or training are less well investigated. In addition, little is known about exercise effects on volume of the basal ganglia, which, however, are involved in motor activities and cognitive functioning. In the current study (1) we examined the relationships of individual cardiovascular and motor fitness levels with the volume of the basal ganglia (namely caudate, putamen, and globus pallidus) and selected cognitive functions (executive control, perceptual speed). (2) We investigated the effect of 12-month training interventions (cardiovascular and coordination training, control group stretching and relaxation) on the volume of the respective basal ganglia nuclei. Results revealed that motor fitness but not cardiovascular fitness was positively related with the volume of the putamen and the globus pallidus. Additionally, a moderating effect of the volume of the basal ganglia (as a whole, but also separately for putamen and globus pallidus) on the relationship between motor fitness and executive function was revealed. Coordination training increased caudate and globus pallidus volume. We provide evidence that coordinative exercise seems to be a favorable leisure activity for older adults that has the potential to improve volume of the basal ganglia.

Effects of Motor versus Cardiovascular Exercise Training on Children's Working Memory.

PURPOSE The aim of this investigation was to examine the influence of different types of exercise exertion on primary school childrens working memory (WM). METHODS Participants (N = 71, 9.4 yr, 39 girls) were randomly assigned to a cardiovascular exercise (CE), a motor exercise (ME), or a control group (CON). They underwent a letter digit span task (WM) before and after an intervention period that involved 10 wk of an additional afterschool exercise regimen, which took place three times a week for 45 min. Students in the control group participated in assisted homework sessions. RESULTS WM performance of the 9- to 10-yr-old children benefited from both the cardiovascular and the motor exercise programs, but not from the control condition. The increase in WM performance was significantly larger for children in the ME compared with the CE or CON. CONCLUSION These findings add to the knowledge base relating different types of exercise and WM. Besides the efficiency of cardiovascular exercise training, a special motor-demanding intervention seems to be a beneficial strategy to improve WM in preadolescent children.

Don’t Lose Your Brain at Work – The Role of Recurrent Novelty at Work in Cognitive and Brain Aging

Cognitive and brain aging is strongly influenced by everyday settings such as work demands. Long-term exposure to low job complexity, for instance, has detrimental effects on cognitive functioning and regional gray matter (GM) volume. Brain and cognition, however, are also characterized by plasticity. We postulate that the experience of novelty (at work) is one important trigger of plasticity. We investigated the cumulative effect of recurrent exposure to work-task changes (WTC) at low levels of job complexity on GM volume and cognitive functioning of middle-aged production workers across a time window of 17 years. In a case-control study, we found that amount of WTC was associated with better processing speed and working memory as well as with more GM volume in brain regions that have been associated with learning and that show pronounced age-related decline. Recurrent novelty at work may serve as an ‘in vivo’ intervention that helps counteracting debilitating long-term effects of low job complexity.

Benefits of Physical Activity and Fitness for Lifelong Cognitive and Motor Development—Brain and Behavior

Abstract The individual lifestyle factor physical activity has been shown to improve cognitive and motor skills across the lifespan. Physical activity further impacts processes in the brain and modulates corresponding brain structures. Respective research distinguishes between effects of acute bouts of exercise and of engagement in long-term physical activity. We summarize how different types of physical activity influence on the one hand, performance in cognitive tasks and, on the other hand, in tasks requiring motor skills. After an introduction to the topic, we review studies on the effects of acute bouts of exercise on cognitive performance, on a behavioral as well as on a neurophysiological level. Then, an overview regarding the influence of acute exercise on tasks requiring motor skills is given. In the next section, specific effects of different types of chronic physical activity (cardiovascular exercise, resistance training, motor coordinative exercise, and dancing) on cognition are reported. Subsequently, studies investigating the influence of chronic physical activity and exercise on motor tasks are presented. As some studies suggest, an interplay between long-term physical activity and acute bouts of exercise, we conclude the chapter by summarizing findings about this relationship.

The Chronic Exercise–Cognition Interaction in Older Adults

In this chapter, we review in detail how physical activity, physical fitness, and fitness interventions are related to and influence cognitive performance and brain health in older adults. To facilitate the understanding of differential exercise effects on cognitive and brain function, we begin with an overview on age-related cognitive and brain changes in normal aging including evidence for the plasticity of brain and behavior. After introducing methodological approaches for investigating the exercise–cognition interaction, we review effects and associations of different types of physical activity and exercise on and with cognition and brain structure and function. Biological and physiological mechanisms that might link physical activity and exercise to brain function and biological processes, and dose–response relationships are also reviewed. We conclude with a discussion of some limitations of the current research and an outlook to potential future research approaches.